Means for resetting annunciator-drops



(No Model,)

0. WI HOLTZER. MEANS FOR RESETTING ANNUNGIATOR DROPS. No. 315,035.

Patented Apr. 7, 1885.

I VE i'ElK.

u. PETERS vnm-Lmw mn Washinglem a c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES W. HOLTZER, OF BROOKLINE, MASSACHUSETTS.

MEANS FOR RESETTING ANNUNClATOR-DROPS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent NO. 315,035, dated April'7, 1885.

Application filed May 19, 1884.

T0 aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES W. HOLTZER, of Brookline, county of Norfolk,State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Annunciators, ofwhich the following description, in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representinglike parts.

My invention relates to annunciators of that class in which the numberedsignal or indicator is supported upon a magnetized bar pivoted with onepole between the cores of two electro-magnets, so that when one of thesaid magnets is energized with the proper polarity it will repel theadjacent'pole of the bar, causing it to'oscillate on its pivot, so as todisplace or conceal the numbered signal carried by it. Theelectro-magnets which when'energized cause the different signals to bedisplayed are placed in a series of normally-open branches of abattery-circuit controlled by keys in the different rooms or points fromwhich the indicators are to be operated. The coils of the otherelectro-magnets by which the indicating-signals are thrown intoconcealment have heretofore been connected in multiplearc circuit onlywith the said battery and controlled by keys at or'near the annunciator,so that by closing one of the said keys the current will pass throughall the said magnets controlled by the said key, being divided amongthem in accordance with the well-known law. The resistance of themagnets is so slight that when alarge number of them are thus connectedtogether in multiple-arc circuit the current is so divided as to beunable to affect them sufiiciently to move the indicators, and the limitthat can be operated in practice is in the neighborhood of from twelveto fifteen, so that in a large annunciator they have had to be groupedin several divisions, each of which is controlled by a corresponding keyor circuit-closer.

The present invention has for its object to enable all therestoring-magnets of alarge annunciator to be controlled by a single keyas well as to enable a number of annunciators located at differentpoints to be all operated simultaneously from a key at any one of thesaid points; and'it consists, partly, in a novel arrangement of thecircuits and controlling devices for accomplishing this object.

(No model.)

Figure 1 is a diagram showing two sections of an annunciator connectedto operate in accordance with this invention, it showing thedrop'instruments in front elevation; F g. 2, a side elevation of one ofthe said drop-lnstruments; and Fig. 3 a side view of one of the keys bywhich the instruments are restored to their normal positions or thesignals concealed.

The indicating-instruments are composed of a Visual signal, a, which maybe marked with a number or otherwise characterized, the said signalbeing supported on a magnetized bar, I), pivoted near its center ofgravity,-w1th one of its poles between two electro-magnets, c (1, sothat when one of the said magnet-sis energized with the proper polarityit will repel the said pole, if the latter is adjacent to the saidmagnets, causing the said bar I) to turn on its pivot and thus move thesignal a laterally in one or the other direction, as the case may be.

It is essential in instruments of this class that the bar b should becarefully balanced with its center of gravity slightly above the pivot,so that when it has passed the middle point or a'vertical position whenmoving 1n either direction it will continue its movement under theaction of gravity, and will remain in its inclined position, restingagainst one of the magnets c or (I, under the action of gravity, untilrepelled therefrom by the magnetic force. In order to thus balance thein dicator-bars, they have, as heretofore constructed, had a piece ofmalleable w1re soldered to them, so that by bending the wire theposition of the center of gravity of the entire device could be varied,bringing 1t to the proper balance. This construction is objectionablefrom the fact that it is somewhat difficult to bend the wire just right,and the wire is likely to be broken or detached from the bar, and inorder to obviate this ob ectlon the bars are in this instance providedwith a balancing-piece, 6, connected by a rivet wlth the bar, so that itmay be turned to the one side and'to the other, and will be retained byfriction in the position in which it is placed. It is thus possible toadjust the counter-balances e without the use of pliers. Thesignaldisksa are composed of thin sheet metal, riv- I it is necessary for theoperator to select the eted or otherwise securely attached to the bar b,this material retaining its shape without warping.

The electro-magnets are energized to actuate the indicators by thecurrent from a battery, B, having one pole connected with a wire, 2,which extends to all the points from which it is intended to operate thesignals, it being connected at each of the said points by a branch wire,3, with one portion of a circuit closer, f, the other portion of whichis connected by wire 4 with one terminal of the coil of the magnet 0.One branch, 3 4, passes through each room or station to a correspondingone of the magnets c, the indicator of which is marked to represent thesaid room or station in the usual manner, and the other terminal of themagnets c is connected by wire 5 with a common wire, 6, connected with aspring-key, is, normally in contact with an anvil or contact-piece, 9,connected by wire 7 with one terminal of an audible signal, S, (shown asa vibrating bell of usual construction,) the other terminal of whichisconnected by wire 8 with the other pole of the battery B, so thatwhenever one'of the circuit-closers f is operated to close thecorresponding branch 3 4 a circuit will be completed through thecorresponding magnet c and bell S, causing the corresponding indicator ato move and the signal S to sound at the same time to attract theattention of the operator at the annunciator.

The indicating-instruments are inclosed in a case, as usual, the frontof which is provided with a series of openings, the position of which isindicated by dotted lines, and the signalingindicators as arenormally-concealed behind the front of the case, but are moved by therepellent force of the magnets 0 into position to be seen through one ofthe said openings.

After one of the indicators has been operated and been seen by theattendant at the annunciator it is necessary to restore it to its normalposition or moveit into concealment, which is done by energizing thecorresponding magnet d,- but as all the said magnets d are to beoperated by an attendant at one point it is not necessary or desirableto have a separate branch or key to each one of the said magnets, as isthe case with the magnets c,- bnt, on the contrary, it is desirable tooperate as many as possible of the said magnets d with a single key.

Heretofore the magnets d in annunciators of this class have beenconnected in multiple are, one magnet only in each branch, and it i ispossible to operate only a comparatively proper key in order to restorethe annunciator in a given column. This isa source of incon veniencewhich is still more objectionable in another form of annunciator whichwill now be described.

In many places annunciators are made in sections, each section beingplaced in a different part of the building, but all being operated by asingle battery. In some cases, especially in apartment-houses, thesections are exact duplicates of one another, and a key, f, at any roomcontrols the corresponding indicator at each section, there being onesection, for instance, at each floor of the building. Thus when the fullnumber of attendants do not happen to be present an attendant on onefloor may respond to a signal from another floor; but whenthe indicatorshave been restored in accordance with the plans previously in use itisimpossible to restore the indicator of one section from another section,so that when an indicator has been operated in all of the sections it isnecessary for the attendant to go to each section to restore it, or elseit will remain until the proper attendant returns, and the saidattendant will not know whether or not the call has been attended to.The present invention is intended to remove these objections and toenable all the indicators of a large annunciator or one made in a numberof sections to be operated from a single point, and in the case of asectional annunciator to be all operated from any given one of the saidsections that may be desired.

The diagram Fig. 1 represents two sections of an annunciator, each ofwhich is provided with a single circuit-controlling device for restoringnot only all the indicators of its own section, but also those of theother sections. This is accomplished by means of the key k, beforereferred to, together with akey, mechanically connected .therewith, butelectrically insulated therefrom, so that both keys 70 k may bedepressed at a single operation, and constitute practically a singlecircuit-controlling device. The same pole of the battery B that isconnected with the wire 2 is also connected by wire 9 with acontact-piece, m, for the key k, the said contact-piece being normallydisconnected from the said key, but brought into connection therewith bythe depression of the key. The wire 8, leading from the signal-bell S tothe other pole of the battery B, is connected by wire 12 with aeontactfpiece, n, of the key Jc, so that when the said keys k 70 aredepressed the former is disconnected at g from the wire 7 and broughtinto connection with the wire 12 and one pole of the battery B, thusremoving the bell S from the circuit. The key 70 is thus connecteddirectly with one pole of the battery and the key is with the otherpole, and the said key 70 is connected by wire 13 with a series ofbranch wires, 14,, each passing through the coils of a series of themagnets d to the wire 6, connected with the key To, so that the current,instead of being divided between a small number of the magnets d, isdivided between a number of series of the said magnets, eachiseriescontaining a sufficient number of the magnets to produce a resistance ineach branch that will render the current effective in it.

' By properly proportioning the number of magnets connected in series ineach of the different branches to the number of branches connected inmultiple are it is possible to operate a hundred or more magnets withthe same battery that will operate only eight or ten connected side byside, or only in multiple arc, as heretofore practiced.

When the annunciator consists of two or more sections, as shown in Fig.1, all the sections may be substantially alike, as shown, the onebattery-wire 2 operating for all the magnets 0 0 of both sections, andbeing connected by a branch wire, 90, in the second section with theanvil-piece W for the key k while the other poleof the battery isconnected by wire 80 with the wire 120 and the anvil-piece n for the keyfr the said wire 120 having a branch, 80, 70 passing through the signalS" to the contact-piece g of the key k", which latter is thus connectedwith the same pole of the battery as the key is.

The branches 40 passing through the magnets 0 may either be independentbranches from the wire 2, or may be connected, as shown, by wire 41 withthe corresponding branches 4 of the other section when correspondingdrops of the different sections are to be operated simultaneously.

The key It is connected by wire with the different branches from themagnets 0 d and the key k is connected by wire 130 and branches 140 withthe different series of magnets d The keys k, &c., of the differentsections are connected together by wires 15, and keys 7c is of thedifferent sections are connected together by wire 16. Thus when any oneof the pairs of keys 70 k or k 70 are depressed the circuit will be asfollows: from one pole of battery B by wire 9, to the spring a, key ifthe keys is k. are operated, wire 13 and branch 14, through all themagnets 01 of the first section to wire 6, key 7;, spring at, and wires12 8, to theother pole of the battery. At the keys k 70 the currentdivides, aportion passing by wires 15 and 16 to the keys 70 70 of thenext section, and so on to all the sections, the circuit'passing fromthe said key 7a and wires 130 and 140, and all the magnets d of thesecond section to thekey k", and if there are more sections the wires 15and 16 will be still further branched to include the remaining sections,each of which forms a loop in the circuit of the battery B. If the keys7c it had been depressed, they would have been brought into connectionwith the battery, and from' thence the current would branch through themagnet (1 (1 of the different sections, as just described. Thus bysingle mechanical operation at any section of the annunciator theindicatingsignals of all the sections will be simultaneously restored.

I claim- 1. An annunciator consisting of aseries ofindicating-instruments,each comprising a pivoted magnetized bar and twoelectro-magnets by which the said bar is moved in opposite directions onits pivot, combined with a series of normally-open independent branchcircuits, one passing through one of the magnets of each instrument, anda series of branch circuits connected together in multiple arc, and

each passing through the coils of the other magnets of a series of thesaid instruments and circuit-controlling devices, whereby an electriccurrent is caused to traverse the said circuits, substantially asdescribed.

2. An annunciator having sections located at different points, eachsection composed of a series of indicating-instruments, each comprisinga pivoted magnetized bar and two electro-magnets to act on oppositesides thereof, combined with aseries of independent normally-open branchcircuits, each including the coil of one of the magnets of the saidindicating-instruments, and a series of branch circuits connectedtogether in multiple are, each including the coils of the other magnetsof a series of the said instruments, the said branches includingdifferent sections of the 5 annunciator, and a circuitcontrolling deviceat each section of the annunciator, whereby a current is applied tothesaid connected branches and energizes the magnets in circuit therewithat allthe sections of the annunciator, substantially as described.

3. In an annunciator, an indicating-instrument composed of a pivotedmagnetized bar provided with a visual signal and electro magnets to actin opposite sides of the said bar, combined with a counterbalancepivotally connected with the said bar and frictionally held in adjustedposition thereon, sub stantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

, CHARLES W. HOLTZER.

Witnesses:

J os. P; LIVERMORE, W. H. SIGsToN.

ioo

